This invention relates to a system for alerting school children and/or their parents of the location of a school bus on a school pick-up (or discharge) route. The system includes a radio receiver in each child's home, whereby radio signals generated by a radio transmitter on a school bus are received at each radio receiver when the receiver is within the range of the transmitter. Signals are received at each radio receiver in time for the students to leave home early enough to meet the bus, but not so soon as to cause unnecessary waiting time or prolonged exposure to weather elements. In the case of small children the system offers a safety feature that limits the time the child has to wait at the bus stop, where he/she might be potentially exposed to abuse from older students or potential child molesters.
The system can be used in the morning hours to alert parents and students when it is necessary to leave home for the appropriate bus stop. The system can also be used in the afternoon hours to alert the parent when the student will be leaving the bus at the appropriate bus stop; the parent can then drive to the bus stop or look for the child's arrival, depending on the distance between the bus stop and the residence.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,713,661 to J. Boone et al discloses a school bus alerting system in which each bus driver announces his/her arrival at a particular bus stop. Each home radio receiver includes a microprocessor that decodes the received message and determines whether the message is coming from the appropriate bus, i.e. the bus that is on the particular route passing by that specific home. A speech synthesizer is connected to each microprocessor to deliver the message through a speaker. The system is apparently designed for use in congested areas where multiple buses might at different times be in close geographical proximity to particular residences without being on the particular route for the particular residence. The microprocessor apparently screens out signals coming form the busses that are not scheduled to pick up children living at the particular residence.
The system of U.S. Pat. No. 4,713,661 is believed to have some disadvantages. For example, the system won't be effective if the bus driver neglects or refuses to announce each stop (or at least most of the stops). Also, the system apparently requires the bus driver to use specific appropriate terminology (otherwise the home receiver microprocessor may not be able to decode the message). The system is probably not usable by temporary bus drivers who are not completely familiar with the microprocessor system or the proper word identification for each bus stop.
The present invention is directed to a relatively simple low cost alternative to the system shown in U.S. Pat. No. 4,713,661.
The proposed system comprises radio transmitter on the bus and individual radio receivers locatable in residences along particular bus routes. Each receiver picks up a signal as the receiver comes into the transmitter broadcast range. Each receiver has associated therewith a light-emitting diode for alerting the parents and students when the bus is a particular distance from the residence, e.g. three quarters mile away. One or two audio speakers are associated with each receiver to generate audible signals (e.g. beeper signals) when the bus is closer to the residence, e.g. one quarter mile away.
The system provides an advance warning signal (by the light emitting diode) and one or two final warning signal(s). In those situations where two or more school busses may be travelling through the same neighborhood, the respective busses and receivers may be set to different signal frequencies, such that each home receiver responds only to the signal frequency coming from the appropriate bus. The system is somewhat similar to garage door opener systems (but with greater operating ranges). The system is intended to be automatic in nature; the bus driver does not have to make any announcements or operate specific control devices.